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All I have to say is I am glad that it got some reconition in the USA it didn't up here in Canada. I didnt' know anything about it before I got pe I read pregnacy books and there was a little about it but I thought the signs were really clear about getting it I had no clue I had it till it was to late. I hope that something come out of this I dont want when I have a child that reachs child bareing age to go through this

It seems like a test like this would be a great way to determine risk, but I believe that the JAMA study found that some women with low levels never got pre-e. So it seems that this would be an excellent way to assess risk for first time pregnant moms. I think it of like the AFP triple screen where its only an indicator of possibility/probability.

I think its great that such a test would be available. It can help first time moms be more vigilant...(and those women who get pre-e for the first time in a subsequent pg). For women like us...well....we already know we have a risk. That's my uneducated theory which may be very off base!

Hi Lisa- I just wanted to say I think it's a great comparision between the AFP and the possible Urine test for PE. While still boasting a rather high number of false positives, the AFP is still a routinely recommended test. High possibility/probablility is more information than we had before, right? (That's how I looked at the AFP, anyway).

But I do want to interject my humble (and also non-medical) opinion about 2nd time Moms- Yes, you are right, we know we have a risk- but I for one would be VERY interested in a test for PE, should one become available. As a future 2nd time Mom (maybe, we'll see) I would be curious to know the results of testing would be. If there is a higher probablitly, this gives me (and my providers) a good sense of what's brewing in my body. If the test were to come back "normal" than that could ease some 2nd/3rd trimester anxiety. While I'm sure a "normal" test wouldn't change anything regarding seeing a High risk doctor or Perinatologist, it would be at very least mildly reassuring (the same way,say, uric acid levels can be reassuring to 2nd time pregnancies).

Is there going to be a study on second pregnancy, same father mothers?

It's nice to know the PF is keeping us up to date on further studies we can be a part of. If it won't make a difference for women here in the U.S. at least it could be a life saver for a woman across the globe.

My biggest question (followed by who gets the test, when, and how much it costs when it does finally become available) is: Does it work to detect other related diseases like pregnancy induced hypertension or superimposed preeclampsia?

It seems like one report I read said it did not. So, while it is great news and we are all happy for the advance and what it will do for others, it may not directly apply to all of us here...Maybe it will eventually lead there? One could hope.

The notion that it may give you the heads-up is interesting - as Jessica says. For those of us embarking on subsequent pregnancies, it would be good knowlege to have. I, like most of us who have been through pe, can't get hold of enough information. I just had a good AFP test, which the peri suggested may indicate less risk this time and am waiting to see if the uterine artery scan will shed any further light. I think it's pretty amazing that this is all new since I had my son 6 years ago - and that finally so much research is being done into pe. If only they would find a darn cure!

Not to be a downer, since the study is great and it hopefully will keep women from experiencing what so many of us did, but when I asked my peri about it, he said they're always coming up with some new test that they hope will predict but as far as he understood the information, for those of us who have already had a pre-e pregnancy we already know we're at risk for the disease again. The test is mainly designed to be used as a general screen for those who haven't had a previous pre-e pregnancy. It ultimately could lead to a change in treatment but that would be several years off. I think one of the great side benefits is the amount of press it's received so that more and more women and health care people watch closer for the early warning signs that we do know.

I'm just so psyched about the possibility of a screening test for those women who are not known to be at risk. Yeah, treatment is still in development, but if you take the long range view this disease has been described in the literature since what, Hippocrates? without any idea of what caused it, and with the only possible treatment being delivery of the placenta. Pubmed has publishing dates back to the 1800s and the first thing that looks like it might actually be a real solid hit in pre-eclampsia research came out in 2003 -- what a tough target this is!

If sFlt-1 really is the unknown toxemia factor, if this continues to pan out, then finally we'll have a screening test. And with a screening test women will be monitored closely, some currently uneducated practitioners might learn to take the disease seriously because they'll be able to tell PE symptoms from regular pregnancy symptoms, and maybe fewer women will die -- especially in third world countries.

I suspect that, cosmically speaking, we'll have a treatment Real Soon Now. It may not be soon enough for any of us, it may come in 40 years, but still -- how cool is that?